Lebanon lost a highly respected lawmaker and a rare politician last week after a long battle with cancer. Nassib Lahoud, a Lebanese Christian leader and presidential candidate, held various posts in government, including Member of Parliament, Minister of State and Ambassador to the U.S. He was hailed by his supporters as a statesman, a moderate politician devoted to Lebanon's independence and democracy.

At his funeral procession, he was honored with the prestigious National Order of the Cedar. In a way his final recognition was the reason his role in politics did not go further. Lahoud began his career as a businessman. He founded a construction company that built large scale power and heavy industry plants in 1972. Hailing form a renowned political family, Lahoud eventually became involved in politics.

 

He played an active role in the Taif accord, which ended the 15-year civil war in Lebanon. His activism led to his appointment in 1990 as Ambassador to the U.S. He returned to Lebanese politics in 1992 as a member of parliament for the Matn district in the first national elections since the end of the war. He was re-elected in 1996 and in 2000 where he fought fierce political battles against corruption and exploitation of power.

 

Living up to his title as a man of principal, Lahoud stopped all his own businesses in Lebanon when working as a public official, setting the precedent for politicians to separate private and public work and encouraging transparency.

 

Throughout his career, Lahoud remained a critic of Syria's role in Lebanese affairs. He worked tirelessly to end Syrian influence in Lebanon and establish formal state relations between the two countries. Despite Syrian pressure to extend the terms of the Presidents it supported, Lahoud was the only MP who opposed every amendment to article 49 of the constitution. He lost the battle, and Elias Hrawi and Emile Lahoud (2005) were able to extend their terms as presidents in 1995 and 2005, respectively.

 

Lahoud's efforts to stir a movement seeking a free Lebanon took root in the establishment of Qornet Shehwan gathering, a mainly Christian coalition of politicians, intellectuals, and businessmen opposed to the Syrian military presence in Lebanon.

 

In 2001, along with nearly fifty Lebanese intellectuals, Lahoud founded the Democratic Renewal Movement, a secular, reformist group intended to promote democracy and freedom in Lebanon. The group gained support among Lebanon's youth, a rare occurrence given the widespread partisanship in Lebanon society. However, the group's efforts did not break the sectarianism and partisanship entrenched in Lebanese society.  

 

Amid growing tension between Syria and Lebanon, politicians from every sect grew tired with the Syrian regime. In September 2004, Lahoud became instrumental in organizing various political parties to form the Bristol Gathering, a movement opposed to Syria's domination of Lebanese politics and the fledgling movement of the Independence Intifada. Lahoud's role and values would lead him to become a prominent figure in the March 14 movement, which emerged after the assassination of late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

 

By 2008, Lebanon was facing a political crisis and had no president.  Lahoud became a serious contender for the Presidency after being designated by a parliamentary majority. The Hezbollah-led opposition, however, refused to attend a legislative session to elect a new president, disrupting the quorum for the session and effectively limiting debate on the presidency. After a regional agreement, General Michel Suleiman was elected president; Lahoud was appointed as Minister of State and he eventually withdrew from the 2009 parliamentary elections. His role in the political life of Lebanon would be relegated to an advisory position, but his legacy as a bright page in Lebanese politics serves as an inspiration for politicians to seek the courage to stand by their principles for a free and sovereign Lebanon.